Lexi Downer, a fourth-year or final year pharmacy student at Drake University, was in class when the power suddenly went out. Her professor shrugged at her brashness and decided to continue teaching her anyway. Her classmates were torn between surprise and laughter.
Downer decided she wanted to record small memories from pharmacy school to look back on memories with her friends and classmates.
As a joke, she started a podcast – “easy to swallow tablets” – along with her friend, classmate and current co-host Peyton Brown, also a P4 student in the Pharmacy program. But what started as a joke quickly became a way for them to share their experiences in pharmacy school and create a resource base for new pharmacy students.
“We started by reminiscing about our time in pharmacy school or just telling funny stories, but when we thought about it, we realized that there is a way for students attending pharmacy school to get an outside perspective on pharmacy. I realized that there wasn't really a whole experience,” Brown said.
Realizing they could use their experience to create something that could help others, Brown and Downer created a spreadsheet of potential schedules and wrote down some rules for podcasting. .
Mr. Downer worked hard on researching podcast production and editing, while Mr. Brown worked diligently on the logistics, such as emailing guests and setting up questions, until last May, when he launched “Easy Pills To Swallow.” ” pilot episode aired. The podcast currently has 27 episodes and is available on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, Rephonic, Goodpods, and Listen Notes.
“Thank you for having Peyton. [Braun] To keep to the schedule. “When we started the podcast, we had a yearly schedule planned,” Downer said in an email interview.
Brown contacts episode guests a month before they are scheduled to record and asks about their availability for the week before they are scheduled to post. They then set a time and Downer was able to spend the weekend editing.
After a brainstorming session on names for the podcast, which included “Farming Pharmers” since both hosts are from Minnesota, they came up with the name “Easy Pills to Swallow.” .
“It shouldn't be a hard pill to swallow because we're not very difficult people,” Brown said.
Downer thought “easy pill to swallow” more accurately described his overall positive experience in pharmacy school.
Brown and Downer's friendship was a big factor in making their co-hosting dynamic feel natural. They said that by understanding each other well, we can effortlessly create a dynamic flow like a well-oiled machine.
“Peyton [Braun] He's my absolute best friend. He wouldn’t have been able to graduate from pharmacy school without him,” Downer said. “We complement each other very well, and I knew he was the only person I wanted to do this work with.”
Brown and Downer entered pharmacy school without mentors who shared their experiences and emphasized the more difficult aspects of the experience, such as managing finances during rotation years and applying for jobs after graduation. .
“Lexi [Dauner] And I thought it would be great to document myself through my final year and see what I could teach others just by being present in my experiences,” Brown said. .
The podcast also did something that wasn't planned. – that Helped them reunite with old friends and classmates.
“I was able to interact with some great people in my class that I never had the opportunity to meet before,” Brown said. There are days when I'm alone while studying. ”
The podcast also provided a way for Downer and Brown to stay connected throughout their senior year while rotating through different states and time zones. Downer is currently in rotation in Alaska.
“We're going to interview [different guests] “It was the first time in a really long time that I was able to catch up with him every week without living next door, so I was really happy,” Brown said.
Their biggest logistical challenge was coordinating the schedules of people living in different time zones and with different schedules while recording on Zoom.
“There was one time I was in Alaska, Lexi. [Dauner] We were in Iowa and had a guest in Arizona,” Brown said. “The internet was unstable at times so it was hard to adjust, and Lexi [Dauner] And I could disappear at some random point. You may even lose the entire recording. ”
Despite the seemingly endless length of the program, which consists of two years of pharmacy school admissions and four years of pharmacy school, Brown says first-year students interested in pharmacy programs can enjoy every step of the experience. He emphasized how important it was.
“Time flies, and it's a really fun experience, so make the most of it. It's great to look forward to life after graduation, but this experience at school won't last forever,” says Brown. he said. “There are things that only pharmacy students can do. Once you become a pharmacist, you have a lot of responsibilities, so make sure to enjoy your work as much as possible while you can still learn.”
Downer also explained how important it is to cherish the difficult times during pharmacy school.
“Looking back on everything, I wish I had been more grateful,” Downer said. Your experience is not your experience without them. From that moment on, you'll learn, grow, and prepare to become the best pharmacist you can be. ”
For Brown and Downer, the podcast is a fun experience that brings back memories they will cherish forever.
“I'm proud of what we accomplished with this song, even if no one listened to it, because it's exactly for Peyton and I, our friends who we share the experience with,” Downer said. he said.
